Photo: Skvader · CC BY-SA 4.0St. Joseph has 6.1 miles of mapped trails, 0.7 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Klinefelter Park (0.6 mi). 81% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 96 acres are parks and preserves, 14 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns · #199 of 274 in Minnesota. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is St. Joseph?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does St. Joseph have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, St. Joseph is ahead of 55% of U.S. towns, #199 of 274 in Minnesota. Trail miles hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Klinefelter Park, with 0.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Northland Park
Centennial Park
45 conserved acres
1% of St. Joseph’s land. Who manages St. Joseph’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Millstream Park Local Park | Town or city | 37 | Open |
| Memorial Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 8 | Open |
5 places to go in St. Joseph
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
2 lakes & rivers
9.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
September is the best month for walking in St. Joseph
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 21 | 26 | 39 | 54 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 71 | 56 | 39 | 26 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 2.6 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 2.9 | 2.6 | 1.4 | 0.9 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.3 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in St. Joseph →
St. Joseph and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Joseph | 1% | 0.7 | 14 | 81% | B |
| St. Joseph Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Waite Park | 5% | 1.1 | 10 | 83% | B+ |
| St. Wendel Township | 3% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| St. Cloud | 5% | 0.4 | 23 | 97% | A− |
| Le Sauk Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 48 | 36% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in St. Joseph
Where can I hike in St. Joseph?
The longest trail networks: Klinefelter Park, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of St. Joseph is conserved land?
1% of its land, against a typical 5% for a Minnesota town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on St. Joseph’s trails?
Klinefelter Park and Northland Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in St. Joseph?
9.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 9.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near St. Joseph?
4,019 acres of parks and open public land lie inside St. Joseph or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 96 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does St. Joseph have?
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #199 of 274 in Minnesota. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from St. Joseph neighbors.
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →